Carr's angry words spark commission showdown

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The schoolchildren assembled at the Australian Stock Exchange for the announcement of a new curriculum looked stunned as Bob Carr got increasingly angry with the reporters firing questions at him.

They were probably unaware they were witnessing a moment of political history, in which a premier was running headlong into a confrontation with the state's corruption watchdog.

That's what yesterday's press conference became. It was meant to be a big day for the Education Minister, Andrew Refshauge. But with Bob Carr by his side, the announcement quickly became an opportunity for the media to further interrogate the Premier over revelations about the involvement of his staff in discussions on the Orange Grove shopping centre in Liverpool.

As a digital display of share prices ticked over behind him, an increasingly ruffled Carr batted back the questions for about 15 minutes.

Midway through, someone had the presence of mind to turn off the share-price ticker before the name "Westfield" appeared over his left shoulder.

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"Let me say something about ICAC," he said. Then he launched into a defence of his senior minister, Craig Knowles, who had been due to appear yesterday before the Independent Commission Against Corruption inquiry into whether, as health minister, he had bullied whistleblower nurses.

Carr was not happy with the coverage of the inquiry in the morning's media, believing it had not given sufficient prominence to evidence that supported Knowles. "We've had it reported when it's been shouted across the chamber of the Parliament by the Opposition and widely reported that he attempted to intimidate nurses. Reported on more than one occasion. Reported on more than one occasion," he chided the media.

"It now transpires as a result of evidence in ICAC that one nurse persists with those allegations and they're contradicted by her brother, who's the nurse's lawyer, and by the other nurses present at that meeting.

"Now, it's too early to comment with finality on the ICAC hearing, but yesterday's evidence is a vindication of the minister."

By noon his comments were running on radio and the commission was aware of what the Premier had said. The media officer at the commission asked for the tape from an ABC radio journalist and it was handed over for further scrutiny during the lunchbreak.

When the commission hearing failed to reconvene at 2pm as scheduled, the barristers waiting outside began to whisper. This was serious, they said.

Finally, close to 3pm, the acting commissioner and retired Supreme Court judge John Clarke reconvened the hearing.

After a few words about the Premier's press conference, he played the tape to the hushed inquiry. "What the Premier said is capable of being understood as conveying the message that the evidence vindicates the minister.

"In this context I wish to make it plain that, in my opinion, those observations should not have been made publicly by any person, much less by the Premier of the state.

"The evil in what he has said is twofold. First, in representing a prejudgement by a senior public figure of a continuing investigation and secondly, and most importantly, in that it is capable of being perceived by members of the public as a means of putting pressure on the Independent Commission Against Corruption and for that reason, on me, to make findings that accord with the Premier's expressed views."

The commissioner suggested the comments be withdrawn, something the Premier has declined to do.

Although he later issued a statement saying it was never his intention to affect the proceedings of the commission, or to influence the commission's deliberations or determinations, he neither apologised nor retracted his comments.

Today, Carr's legal advisers will need to appear before Commissioner Clarke in person. The choice is either to tough it out, or eat humble pie.